Research & Conservation Programs

Working to Save Desert Plants and Habitats since 1939

Our work: You may not know that the cactus family is the fifth most endangered group of organisms identified by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), but 23 scientists and conservationists are working hard to understand, protect and conserve these treasured lifeforms and the other desert plants that make our deserts unique.

GARDEN SCIENTISTS ARE FULFILLING OUR MISSION THROUGH PROJECTS IN ARID REGIONS AROUND THE WORLD.

Hazel Hare Center for Plant Science

The 85,000-square-foot Center is where Garden staff, researchers and volunteers are at work growing, studying and taking care of a world-class collection of desert plants. Many of these species are rare and endangered.

Living Collection

The Garden has more than 25,000 accessioned plants that represent more than 4,200 taxa in more than 100 plant families. It boasts many varieties of cactus (cactaceae), agaves (agavaceae), aloes (aloaceae) and other flora of the Sonoran Desert and deserts of the world.

Rare and Endangered

A collection of nearly 400 rare, threatened or endangered desert plant species. The Garden maintains 52 rare species as part of the National Collection of Endangered Plants, in cooperation with the Center for Plant Conservation. Additionally, the Garden’s seed bank of desert species stores frozen seeds and pollen of rare plants.

The Herbarium

The Herbarium contains 83,000 accessioned specimens, houses reference materials, is an arbiter of correct names for plant identification, and serves as a databank of the diversity and distribution of regional vegetation, with a special emphasis on agavaceae and cactaceae.